For more information about PCOM's Biomedical Sciences Program, click here.

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Year Two Continues: Second and Third Trimester

The weathers getting warmer outside once again, and in what feels like the blink of an eye another year in academia is about to conclude. It's been quite the undertaking balancing work with classes at PCOM the past two years, but its been worthwhile in what I've gained in experience and knowledge. The graduation ceremony where all of my fellow biomedical students and myself are awarded our master's degree is right around the corner, but there's still a lot of work to be done over the summer. However, before I get into the capstone project- which I'll cover next month- I'm going to wrap up the didactic portion with this blogger post going over the past two trimesters.

Forensic medicine (FMED I/II) follows after the rigors of pathology and they focus more on real-world exposure, as well as expert experience. Each weekend class session is completely different from the next. Topics are taught to the class by experts in their respective field through class discussion, PowerPoint presentation and hands-on experience in the field. The following is a list of the subjects that we've covered in our two FMED classes over the past several months:

Manner of Death / Cause of Death
Post-Mortem Changes in Anatomy/Physiology
Entomology
Odontology
Ritualistic and Religious Crimes
Crime Scene Investigation and Fingerprinting
Blood Spatter and Forensic Photography
Anthropology
Firearm Ballistics
Electrocution
Child/Elderly Abuse
Basic Legal Systems
Arson
Water Related Death

Each subject is taught with an emphasis on how it relates to the forensic field of study. Students are expected to learn and excel at these topics with the capability of obtaining a job within a forensic/legal setting upon graduation. Some of my peers have jobs like this lined up, but others plan on furthering their education by attending a professional school (medicine, podiatry, law, etc).

The information is vast, and there's a great deal to learn- but when forming a larger picture of all of these topics- they're intertwined in a way which encompasses the forensic profession as a whole.